David Higginson

David Higginson

David Higginson gave up his position as an investment analyst in London in order to help people.

As a chief Information technology officer for Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock, the 32-year-old Brit has been involved in about 150 computer-related projects for the hospital since 1999.

His job is to find ways technology can help the hospital.

His latest handiwork should be unveiled in July when nurses will be able to order patients' food through a personal digital assistant that instantly recognizes the patients' dietary needs and avoids ordering any food that will cause an allergic reaction.

Higginson started working for the hospital in 1996 in its Research Institute, where he developed a computer program to track all of the hospital's research grants.

"What I enjoy most is developing a computer system … and seeing that it's made a significant difference in somebody's life or their day-to-day work," Higginson said.

After working for several for-profit companies, Higginson said he's glad he's working for a nonprofit.

"If it improves the patient's stay at the hospital, it's worth doing," he said.